It is a common practice on a network such as the Internet or an intranet (“net,” commonly) to have multiple-frame pages in which a page is divided into multiple sub-pages. Each of these subpages can display the contents of multiple resources such as but not limited to Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) pages, images, or graphics files. These resources are commonly accessed by the use of an address-type identifier called a uniform resource locator, or URL.
In a multiple-frame page, resources from different owners can easily be presented together as shown in FIG. 1. The multiple-frame web page 100 in this case is accessed by entering the URL for website A (www.we-frame-patents.com). A's sub-page 102 appears on the left side of the screen, and frames B's sub-page 104, in this case the IBM Patent Server (www.ibm.patents.com), which appears on the right side of the screen. Note that the position of the sub-pages is not important; because site A's URL was entered, its is the framing sub-page.
With framing, the potential for misuse of a network resource is great. The owner of site B has no control over (and often no knowledge of) site A's use of the site B resource, because it is only a matter of establishing a link to the site B by using B's URL in A's site design. This misuse can come in many forms, such as defamation, libel, or copyright infringement.
Thus, in order to protect one's network resources, it is desirable to detect instances where the content of one's website is being framed by another website. When instances of framing are detected, then the framing pages can be checked to see if such use amounts to misuse, and appropriate action can be taken.